Whey based binary bioplastics

We fabricated and characterized whey protein bioplastics obtained via blending the protein with two abundant biopolymers: natural latex and egg white albumin. Natural latex and albumin contain amino acids with reactive groups that make the materials potentially compatible with whey protein. The bioplastics were obtained by compression molding where water was added as plasticizer. Thermal transitions, tensile stress, percent strain at break, and Young's modulus were measured for the materials. It is demonstrated that addition of about 10% of the latex and albumin to the whey based bioplastics improves the toughness characteristics of whey based materials without compromising their strength and stiffness.